Aethelred II of Mercia

Aethelred II of Mercia (died 911) was Lord of the Mercians from 881 to 911, succeeding Ceolwulf II of Mercia and preceding Aethelflaed.

Biography
Aethelred was the son of King Ceolwulf II of Mercia, and, in 879, he succeeded his father as ruler of Mercia after his frail father suddenly died in the middle of a meeting with King Alfred the Great of Wessex at his court in Winchester. Alfred then discussed a marriage to bind Wessex and Mercia together, and Aethelred offered 4,000 pieces of silver as Princess Aethelflaed's bride price; however, Alfred instead had Aethelred give Aethelflaed several wealthy lands in Mercia to create a more permanent bride price. Aethelred and Aethelflaed's marriage was loveless, and Aethelred became an alcoholic. His invasion of Wales in 881 failed, and he was forced to acknowledge Alfred as his overlord soon after. In 886, Alfredcaptured London from the East Anglian Danes, and he ceded it to Aethelred, as it was traditionally a Mercian town. In 892, Aethelred led an Anglo-Saxon army to victory over the Vikings at the Battle of Buttington, and he spent the next three years fighting alongside Edward the Elder against the Danes. After 899, his health began to decline, and Aethelflaed became the regent of Mercia. Aethelred died in 911, and Aethelflaed succeeded him as "Lady of the Mercians".